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July 15, 2015

This is the last part of an article published by Lynda and Mary in the American Quilt Study Group quarterly newsletter, Blanket Statements, in Spring 2014.

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"[. . .] Mayest thou when retiring from thy useful labours reflect with satisfaction on the time devoted to this useful Institution." This part of the 1844 dedication on Ann's quilt has caused long-held speculation that the quilt blocks were made for Ann on the occasion of her retirement from the House of Industry. However, census records in 1850 show Ann listed as "Matron" at the residence where she was living. More importantly, the minutes of the Female Society of Philadelphia for the Relief and Employment of the Poor dated 3rd mo 10th 1883 reported that Ann had died on March 1, 1833, stating that she had entered the House of Industry in 1826 and served as its Matron for forty years, or until 1866. The term "retiring", in this case, may have referred to the end of each day or to a time in the distant future.

Detail, The House of Industry Signature Quilt. Photograph by Joseph Coscia, Jr.

We do not know what prompted members of the Society to make the blocks that comprise Ann's quilt. We do know that Ann was held in high regard and with deep affection by Society members who served as managers at the House of Industry. When Ann's deteriorating health prevented her from continuing her service as Matron, the Society "[. . .] assured her a home in the 'House' for the remainder of her days. For years she was almost entirely blind, and did not attempt to leave the house or even go down stairs. But her chamber, the door of which was rarely closed, was gladly visited by the members as opportunity offered. And a grateful, cheerful welcome was sure to be received from her. [. . .] And when after one weeks [sic] illness the summons did arrive there was apparently nothing for her to do but calmly to fall asleep--trusting in her Savior. And we fully believe that an abundant entrance has been given her into the Realms of Light-And that after Ninety two Years' probation she has now received the Masters [sic] Verdict of Well Done." (Endnote 14)

Detail, The House of Industry Signature Quilt. Photograph by Joseph Coscia, Jr.

Ann Burns' funeral was held at the House of Industry and she was buried at Woodlands Cemetery in Philadelphia. (Endnote 15) Her death might have ended the story of her quilt were it not for the following entry in the Society's "Minutes" of 3rd mo 24, 1883. "We received a touching legacy from Ann Burns. A handsome & elaborate calico bed quilt which has been greatly treasured by her for many years, the patches having been made for her by - & marked with the names of many friends who were Managers of this Institution in Days lang syne. The quilting was performed by her & her coadjutor Susan Annadown. It was Ann's particular desire that the quilt should always remain at the House of Industry - as a 'Memento of Our Old Matron'."

Detail, The House of Industry Signature Quilt. Photograph by Joseph Coscia, Jr.

The endnotes began with the initial post about this quilt on June 15, 2015 and continue in sequence

through our last post on July 1, 2015 and this posting.

(14) "Minutes", 3rd mo 10th 1883.

(15) Historical Society of Philadelphia, Church and Town Records, 1708-1985, Reel 1070, accessed through www.ancestry.com. Cemetery records show that Ann was buried on March 3, 1883 in an area that also contains the grave of her son, Jacob H. Burns. Jacob predeceased her in 1880 at the age of 60 years. He would have been six years old when Ann became Matron of the House of Industry.

July 1, 2015

This post continues the article published by Lynda and Mary in the American Quilt Study Group quarterly newsletter, Blanket Statements, in Spring 2014.

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The House of Industry was established in 1798 by a group of Quaker women, most of whom appear in minutes of the Philadelphia Monthly Meeting of the Religious Society of Friends. (Endnote 4) They were initially inspired and led by Ann Parrish after a devastating yellow fever epidemic left scores of women and children destitute in Philadelphia and its environs. Known first as the Friendly Circle, this group became known as The Female Society of Philadelphia for the Relief and Employment of the Poor when, in 1815, forty-six of their unmarried members incorporated the organization. (Endnote 5)

Copy of the incorporation document enacted in 1815. Collection of Lynda Salter Chenoweth.

The organization first provided paid employment to poor women by giving them the materials to spin flax and wool in their homes. It soon became apparent that the poor conditions of these women, often living in tiny, unheated rooms with their children and other family members, were not conducive to productive work. In 1798, the Society decided to provide a house to accommodate spinning in a warm and spacious environment. (Endnote 6) With incorporation in 1815, the House of Industry expanded the women's work to sewing and they began to make shirts, chemises, wrappers, bed clothes, pillow cases, petticoats and other items including quilts and comfortables, "soft thick quilts, used as substitutes for blankets and laid under the bedspread." (Endnote 7) Two quilting frames were donated to the House by John Bacon in 1841, a year in which 212 comfortables and thirty-one bed quilts were completed. (Endnote 8)

Detail of the House of Industry Quilt. Photograph by Joseph Coscia, Jr.

The women's work was overseen by House managers appointed on a rotating, weekly basis from the membership of the Society. They prepared the materials to be sewn, monitored the quality of the work, and provided weekly production reports. (Endnote 9) In addition to the volunteer managers, the House employed cooks, an elderly "Nurse" to watch over the children of those hired to sew, and a house Matron. Ann Oliver Burns, born in England about 1791, became the first Matron of the House of Industry in 1826. (Endnote 10) The widow of Jacob Burns, Ann was not a Quaker but rather a member of the Methodist Episcopal Church. She received room and board as Matron and, in 1842 and 1844, earned an annual salary of $80.00 (the equivalent of $2,500 in 2013 dollars). (Endnote 11)

Herr's article indicates that all of the blocks in Ann's quilt (seventy-six) display names of members of the Female Society of Philadelphia for the Relief and Employment of the Poor. (Endnote 12) Fifty-five of the names are those of Society managers actively serving at the House of Industry during the years 1840-1845, roughly the period of time when Ann's quilt blocks were being made. The name of S. [Sarah] Wistar, an additional manager, is inscribed as Ann's "sincere friend" on the quilt's dedicatory panel. Sarah herself was the recipient of a "Wistar Family Quilt" in 1842 dedicated to her by her nephews. A block bearing the name of Ann Oliver Burns appears in this quilt, along with blocks bearing the names of other House of Industry friends. Sarah's quilt is a holding of the International Quilt Study Center & Museum in Lincoln, Nebraska. (Endnote 13)

Wistar Family Quilt. Detail of block inscribed with the name "Ann Oliver Burns" 1842." Photograph

(5) Margaret Hope Bacon, Mothers of Feminism, The Story of Quaker Women in America (Philadelphia: Friends General Conference, 1986), 80 and The Constitution, By-Laws and Rules of the Female Society of Philadelphia for the Relief and Employment of the Poor, Incorporated First Month, 1815 (Philadelphia: printed by James M. Armstrong, Inc., undated). Preamble. Note: The successor to this organization is the current Female Society of the Philadelphia Yearly Meeting which still performs many charitable acts.

(6) "Notebook of Catherine W. [Wistar] Morris, 1802", Haverford College Quaker & Special Collections, HC.Coll 1234, 1 volume, Z.2.22. Note: The "headquarters" of the Friendly Society was the home of Ann Parrish on Ramstead Street. The House of Industry, according to Elizabeth W. Comfort, "The Female Society - Now and Then" in Philadelphia Yearly Meeting News (Volume XV, No. 5, August 1977), had various locations over time. Society "Minutes" (cited below) refer to a location in Ramstead Court before it was moved to 70 North 7th Street in 1846. The House was located at 112 North 7th Street at the time of Ann Burns' death in 1883, as attested by her home address on burial records.

(8) Sandra Sudofsky, "Research Notes", undated, "Minutes of the Female Society of Philadelphia for the Relief and Employment of the Poor", 3rd mo 29th 1841, Haverford College Quaker & Special Collections, The Female Society of Philadelphia for the Relief and Employment of the Poor Minutes, 1795-1978, 20 volumes, HC.Coll 1234, Z.1.1 - Z.1.10 and "Weekly House of Industry Reports, 1840-1845", Haverford College Quaker & Special Collections, House of Industry Weekly Reports 1830-1846, 8 volumes, HC.Coll. 1234, Z.2.7. The Minutes and House of Industry Weekly Reports are hand-written and arranged according to date (inscribed in the Quaker style) without pagination.

(9) The Minutes of the Society for the years 1840-1844 indicate that women were employed at the House of Industry only during the winter when the weather was cold and productivity would be increased by providing a spacious and warm environment for the sewing activity. The Society usually opened the House in December and closed it by early April.

Ann Hanna Hambleton

Ann was the mother-in-law of Philena Cooper Hambleton, the subject of Philena's Friendship Quilt: A Quaker Farewell to Ohio, and the great-aunt of Senator Marcus Hanna of Ohio.

American Quilt Study Group

Do you know about the American Quilt Study Group (AQSG)? If not, you should. The purpose of this non-profit organization is to establish, sustain, and promote the highest standards for quilt related studies, to encourage these studies, and to provide opportunities to disseminate the work of both academic and non-academic researchers. Membership in the AQSG entitles one to receive Uncoverings, an annual journal of the research papers presented at AQSG's yearly Seminar, and a quarterly publication titled Blanket Statements containing research papers, notes and queries, as well as AQSG and quilt world news. In addition, an annual directory is provided that lists the names, contact information, and interests of current AQSG members--a valuable networking resource that gives access to approximately 950 fellow quilt enthusiasts. Click on the quilt block above to visit AQSG's web site and learn how to become a member. The site also provides information about the organization's annual Seminar, its publication opportunities, its Quilt Study program, and the Technical Guides and other publications available to members and the general public. AQSG is also on facebook at http://www.facebook.com/pages/American-Quilt-Study-Group/149056808116.

Quaker Quilts: Snapshots from an Exhibition

This pamphlet by Mary Holton Robare contains photographic and informational snapshots of quilts that were displayed in a three-day exhibit of Quaker Quilts held at Abram's Delight Museum in Winchester, Virginia, in 2014. The exhibit featured twenty-six quilts made between ca. 1840 and 2007. Click on the image to learn more about it.

Quilts and Quaker Heritage

Mary Holton Robare's book on selected quilts from an exhibition at the Virginia Quilt Museum in 2008. Click on the book to order and search by title.

Philena's Friendship Quilt: A Quaker Farewell to Ohio

In this 4th publication of the Ohio Quilt Series published by Ohio University Press, Lynda Salter Chenoweth presents the story of Philena Cooper Hambleton and the quilt made for her in Ohio in 1853 to take with her when she migrated to Iowa. To order, click on the book and then search by title.

Neighbors and Friends: Quakers in Community

Lynda Salter Chenoweth's second book based on her research into Philena's quilt tells the stories of those whose names appear on the quilt and places their lives in context. To order, click on the book and then search by title.

When This You See Remember Me

Also of interest by Mary Holton Robare. Schoolgirl Samplers of Winchester and Frederick County, Virginia. To order, click on the book, click "Store", then "Softcover Books" and search on title.

Followers

Copyright

(c) 2011-2017 Lynda Salter Chenoweth and Mary Holton Robare. Absolutely no reproduction or distribution permitted beyond one copy for personal study. For additional permissions regarding text please e-mail lchen@saber.net. All images are reproduced with permission of copyright holders. Any commercial or online use is strictly forbidden.

Lynda Salter Chenoweth

Mary Holton Robare

About Us

Lynda and Mary are quilt historians experienced in researching and publishing information about quilts made by members of the Religious Society of Friends. Their particular interest is in 19th century inscribed quilts that document Quaker families and their communities.
Lynda lives in Sonoma,California, and is a writer, a quilter, a researcher, and a member of the Board of the American Quilt Study Group. Mary lives in Winchester, Virginia, and is a writer, a researcher, and a choreographer and dance instructor.